Remembering Big Jack

Bowling lost a great friend last Sunday when Jack Kordusky died in his sleep.

Of all the people I met during my 14 years on the road staff of the Professional Bowlers Association, he was definitely one of the most memorable and one of my favorites. He stood 6-foot-8 and was known by just about everybody as “Big Jack.” His heart was at least as big as his stature.

Kordusky was the general manager at Carolier Lanes in North Brunswick, N.J., when I first met him a few years ago. The center has hosted many PBA events over the years, many of them with the help of Big Jack. We got along great, and anything I needed to help run the tournament, he made sure it got done.

Big Jack and I hit it off right away on my first visit to the center in 1991. I saw how easily he connected with the bowlers – amateurs and pros alike.

The Friday night after the position round matches that year, I decided to practice. Kordusky saw me and asked me if he could join me, which he, of course, did.

That’s when I found out Big Jack was a little competitive! After a few practice balls, we were involved in a great head-to-head match, which became a Friday-night tradition the rest of the time we visited Carolier.

We had some epic battles, and even drew a crowd on a couple of occasions. I remember the last time we bowled, I had a particularly good night (with Paige Pennington as a witness) and went 5-0-1 against Big Jack, including a 288 game (using an Ebonite Lion that belonged to Bill Oakes. That’s how long ago it was!).

The next day, before I introduced the TV finalists, Big Jack just gave me a big smile and said, “I think I’ve still got a little ass left, JC! You beat most of it off me last night!”

That was Jack. Always with a great sense of humor.

His death touched many people lucky enough to have known Kordusky, on and off the lanes.

“We were all so shocked, and nobody could believe it,” said PBA Hall of Fame bowler Johnny Petraglia, who knew Kordusky for more than 40 years. “A couple of months ago, he had a hip replacement, and was doing OK. Then the last few days, he started complaining that he didn’t feel good. Then he just died in his sleep.”

Petraglia found out about Kordusky’s death on the first day of the PBA50 UnitedHealthcare Sun Bowl In The Villages tournament, in which Petraglia eventually finished fifth despite the news.

“When I rented the pro shop at Carolier in 1973, that was right after Jack started bowling in junior leagues,” Petraglia recalled.

One of Petraglia’s favorite stories about Kordusky happened around 1993. Petraglia was coaching Michael J. Fox to star in the movie “Greedy,” which featured Fox as a PBA bowler.

“Jack was the manager at Carolier, and I walk in with Michael J. Fox,” Petraglia said. “Michael is about 5-5, so when he met Jack for the first time, Jack told him, ‘Everybody calls me Big Jack.’

“Michael then said, ‘I think I’ll just call you Big!’ And that’s how he referred to him for two months!”

Carolyn Dorin-Ballard, who is originally from New Jersey, was also a very close friend of Kordusky’s, and wrote a moving tribute to him on her Facebook page. There were some great comments on the post from bowlers and others in the bowling industry who knew him.

Kordusky moved south a few years ago and ran Heartland Bowl in Sebring, Florida, for the past few years.

Friday was designated as a day of celebration for Big Jack, and a time for his many friends to share their favorite memories of him.